Article separator

ABSTRACT

An apparatus and method for separating stacked, flat articles. Apparatus includes a conveyor assembly for feeding a plurality of stacked, flat articles to a separator assembly for separating the front article from the remainder of the stacked articles. The separator assembly includes a pivoted vacuum arm engaging a corner of the front article and swings it outwardly to initially enable the first separator disc to cut in behind the outermost article. A pair of rotating discs, having segments cut therefrom, enter between the front article and the one immediately behind to bend the top of the article outwardly for withdrawal from the stack. A forwarding assembly engages the outwardly bent top of the first article and withdraws it from the stack. The forwarding assembly includes a set of delivery segment wheels which are periodically actuated to press the forwardly bent top edge of the article against oppositely mounted wheels to withdraw the article from the stack. Continuously rotating matching forwarding wheels then engages the article and conveys it on to a conveyor belt or other suitable device for carrying away the articles in single file. The apparatus is particularly well adapted for separating stacked blanks used in manufacturing gusseted multiwall bags.

United States Patent [72] lnventor ThomasW.Ebeling 10393 RadabaughDrive, Montgomery,

0hio45242 2| AppliNo. 733,645 22 Filed May3l,l968

[45] Patented June22,1971

l 54 ARTICLE SEPARATOR Primary Examiner-Richard E. AegerterAttorneyDonald L. Johnson ABSTRACT: An apparatus and method forseparating stacked, flat articles. Apparatus includes a conveyorassembly for feeding a plurality of stacked, flat articles to aseparator assembly for separating the front article from the remainderof the stacked articles. The separator assembly includes a pivotedvacuum arm engaging a comer of the front article and swings it outwardlyto initially enable the first separator disc to cut in behind theoutermost article. A pair of rotating discs, having segments cuttherefrom, enter between the front article and the one immediatelybehind to bend the top of the article outwardly for withdrawal from thestack. A forwarding assembly engages the outwardly bent top of the firstarticle and withdraws it from the stack. The forwarding assemblyincludes a set of delivery segment wheels which are periodicallyactuated to press the forwardly bent'top edge of the article againstoppositely mounted wheels to withdraw the article from the stack.Continuously rotating matching forwarding wheels then engages thearticle and conveys it on to a conveyor belt or other suitable devicefor carrying away the articles in single file. The apparatus isparticularly well adapted for separating stacked blanks used inmanufacturing gusseted multiwall bags.

PATENTEUYJUNZZIS'H 3586.313

SHEET 2 BF 9 FIG. 2.

PATENTEDJUNZZIHYI 3586,3113

SHEET 6 BF 9 99 l f|o| DELIVERY A c STARTER SEGMENT I DRIVE MOTOR Lil-H(I02 [IOI VACUUM c STARTER PUMP (I58 IoI I 4 L f STARTER ST SFI r CLUTCHBRAKE DISC CLUTCH BRAKE CONTROL 77c 9Q I05 uo 3- CR y TDR TDR \f ZZ% l-I 97 772 DELIVERY 1 SEGMENT CLUTCH SOLENOD 0 [H2 2-WAY 1 VACUUM RELEASEI AIR VALVE SOLENOID lO9 TD I07 TDR 4-wAY J BAG RETAINING LEvER AIRVALVE 2$ SOLENOID /IOS 4-WAY PIV ARM AIR vALvE SOLENOID 38 36 2-WAY 3AIR VALVE SOLENOID FIG. 8.

PATENIEII JUN22 I9?! SUPPLY AIR SHEET 7 [IF 9 I09 72 'n' j EXHAUST BAGRETAINING LEVER VACUUM RELEASE EXHAUST FIG. 9.

PATENTEU JUH22 l97l SHEET 8 OF 9 FIG. IOA.

FIG.

PATENT-ED JUN22 I971 SHEET 9 OF 9 FIG. l2.

ARTICLE SEPARATOR BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the InventionThis invention relates, in general, to an apparatus for separating asingle article from a stack of flat articles. More particularly, theinvention relates to an apparatus that can be used for separating singlebag blanks from a plurality of stacked, gusseted flat bag blanks.

2. Description of the Prior Art Numerous devices are known forseparating small flat articles from a stack of articles such as envelopeblanks, paper carton blanks, and information cards. In U.S. Pat. No.2,797,092, an apparatus for feeding envelope blanks from a stack into ahigh speed automatic processing machine is described. The deviceutilizes discs having cutout sectors therein operating in conjunctionwith a pair of pivotable vacuum arms to initially separate a singleenvelope blank from the stack of blanks. However, machines of theforegoing type have not found general utility in the separation offairly large objects such as cardboard box blanks, multiwall paper bagblanks, because the foregoing type devices operate on a continuous basiswhich has not been found satisfactory for separating large size stiffarticles such as cardboard box blanks, and multiwall, gusseted paper bagblanks.

Therefore there exists a need for an article separating device whichwill handle large stiff objects and rapidly separate the objects forconveying in single file for further processing.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention toprovide an apparatus which will rapidly separate single flat articlesfrom a stack of articles.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an articleseparating device which will automatically feed articles single file toa work station.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide an articleseparating apparatus capable of separating single flat articles having awide variety of sizes from a stack of articles.

The foregoing, and other arrangements, objects, and advantages of theinvention as may appear hereinafter, are in general realized in anapparatus for separating stacked fiat articles which includes means toadvance a plurality of fiat articles. Means are also provided to bendoutwardly a portion of the front article. Other means are provided toengage the outwardly bent portion of the front article to separate thefront article from the stack. Other means are provided to advance theseparated articles in single file.

In one embodiment of the apparatus for separating stacked, flat articlesa conveyor assembly is provided which includes a link chain or beltdevice for conveying a plurality of edge stacked flat articles. Apneumatic power source is connected to the chain or belt conveyor and iscoupled to a solenoid valve supplying power to the pneumatic powersource. A switch contactable by the front article is provided to actuatethe solenoid valve whereby the edge stacked flat articles areperiodically advanced to a separator assembly. A separator assembly isprovided which includes a pivotable mounted suction arm device togetherwith a movable restraining finger device. A pair of interconnectedrotatably mounted discs having open sectors therein are provided. Aclutch-brake device is attached to one of the discs to periodicallyactuate the pair of discs to bend forward the upper portion of the frontarticle in the stack. An assembly is also provided which includes aplurality of sector wheels mounted on a rotatable shaft. Oppositelymounted wheels engage the sector wheels. A plurality of continuouslyrotating forwarding wheels are mounted to engage a second set of wheelsmounted therebelow to forward the single articles on in a generallyhorizontal path.

The method aspects of the present invention for separating stacked, flatarticles may be carried out by the steps of forwarding a plurality ofstacked, fiat articles and then bending outwardly the top portion of thefront article; then engaging the top portion of the front article andseparating the front article from the remainder of the stack.

The present invention provides numerous advantages not found in devicesfor separating fiat articles used heretofore. The present device may beloaded with a large stack of flat articles and left unattended for longperiods of time. The device automatically forwards the stacked articles,then cleanly separates the individual articles and moves the article tothe next work station. The device only requires low pressure air andelectrical power sources for actuation of its moving parts. A particularadvantage of the device is that it is readily adjustable to accommodatearticles having a wide range of sizes.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a front elevational view ofan article separating apparatus constructed in accordance with thepresent invention;

FIG. 2 is a left-hand side view of the article separating apparatus ofFIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a rear elevational view of the article separating apparatus ofFIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a portion of the apparatusof FIG. 1 taken along the line 4-4;

FIG. 5 is a perspective elevational view of the first separator disc andthe vacuum ann;

FIG. SA is an enlarged elevational view of the bag holding finger andassociated components;

FIG. 6 is an enlarged elevational view of the clutch-brake mechanism forthe sector wheels drive assembly;

FIG. 7 is a perspective elevational view showing the separator devicecomponents in the initial rest position;

FIG. 7A is a view similar to FIG. 7 showing the separator components inthe first stage of separating the articles;

FIG. 7B is a view similar to FIG. 7 showing the components of theseparator assembly in the second or middle stage of separating anarticle;

FIG. 7C is a view similar to FIG. 7 showing the article separatingapparatus with the components in the position immediately following theseparation of an article from the stack;

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of the electrical system for the articleseparating apparatus;

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of the pneumatic system for the articleseparating apparatus;

FIG. 10 is an enlarged side view of the switch assembly mounted on therear of the shaft of the second separator disc;

FIG. 10A is a right-hand end view of the assembly of FIG. 10;

FIG. 1 1 is a perspective elevational view of another embodiment for theconveyor assembly portion of the article separating apparatus;

FIG. 12 is a side elevational view of still another embodiment for theconveyor assembly portion of the article separating apparatus, and

FIG. 13 is a side view of a portion of the apparatus of FIG. 12 takenalong the line 13-13.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The article separatingapparatus of the present invention may be described in reference tothree assemblies. As seem more clearly in FIG. 2 a conveyor assembly,designated generally by the numeral 20, is provided to move forward aplurality of flat articles such as multiwall bag blanks 21. A separatorassembly, designated generally by the numeral 22, is mounted on theseparator assembly above the forward end of the multiwall bag blanks 2].A forwarding or advancing assembly, designated generally by the numeral23, is mounted on the separator assembly immediately ahead of the upperportion of the bag blanks.

CONVEYOR ASSEMBLY As seen in FIGS. 14 the conveyor assembly includesfour spaced apart support legs 24. A generally rectangular support frame25 is mounted on the upper ends of the four support legs. A rearwardshaft 26 is rotatably mounted in bearing blocks 27-27 attached to thesides of the frame 25. A forward shaft 29 is rotatably mounted inbearing blocks 30-30 attached to the frame 25 at its forward end. A pairof forward sprockets 28a-28a are mounted on the shaft 29 and areconnected to rearward sprockets 28-28 mounted on shaft 26 by means ofindividual chain drives 31-311. A reversible air cylinder 32 is mountedon the left-hand side of the frame 25. The air cylinder is provided witha rod 33 having a rack 34 provided on the end thereof. A matching toothgear 35 (see FIG. 9) engages the rack 34 and is fixed to the forwardshaft 29 to rotate the same upon movement of the rod 33 by the aircylinder. An electric limit switch 36, seen more clearly in FIGS. 2 and4, is connected by leads 37 to a solenoid air valve 38 which controlsthe air flow to air cylinder 32.

A plurality of support fingers 39 are attached at their lower ends tothe chain drive 31 to support the bag blanks 21 as they are movedforward on the conveyor assembly. These fingers prevent the full weightof the bags 21 from being exerted against the discs hereinafterdescribed and also prevent the bags from folding and collapsing on theconveyor assembly. As seen in FIGS. 3 and 4, a pair of upwardlyextending rods 40-40 have their bases attached to the frame 25 wherebythey may be moved up or down. Each shaft carries at its upper end a pairof rollers 41-41 which bear on the outer face of the front orforwardmost bag blank 42. As seen more clearly in FIGS. 2, 4, 7A and 7B,a pair of brackets 43-43 are mounted at the forward end of frame 25 andslidably support rods 44-44 having a wheel 45 rotatably mounted on theforward ends thereof. The position of this wheel is adjusted so that theswitch 36 is actuated when bags are removed from the stack of bag blanks21.

SEPARATOR ASSEMBLY As seen more clearly in FIGS. 1, 2, and 3 a pair ofslightly inclined support arms 46-46 have their lower ends affixed tothe support frame 25 on each side thereof adjacent the forward end. Acrossmember 47 extends between the upper ends of the support arms 6.

A first rotating disc 48 is fixedly mounted on shaft 49 which is carriedby bearing block '50 attached to crossmember 47. The disc is providedwith a cutout portion 48a. As seen in FIG. 3 a pulley 51 is attached tothe rear end of shaft 49 and is connected by belt 52 to pulley 53mounted on shaft 54. Shaft 54 is rotatably mounted in bearing block 50and is coupled directly to the second rotating disc 55, as can be seenmore clearly in FIG. 10. A forward pulley 57 is fixedly mounted on theend of shaft 54. An electric motor 58 and a gear reducer 58a are mountedatop a clutch-brake device and coupled thereto by means of pulleys 60-60connected by belt 61. A pulley 62 on the forward side of clutch-brakedevice 59 is connected by belt 63 to the pulley 57 to provide power forthe rotation of the two discs 48 and 55.

An air cylinder 64 is mounted atop crossmember 47 and has the outer endof a rod 65 extending therefrom. The rod 65 is connected to a pivot arm66 which carries on its end a vacuum arm 67. A soft rubber suction cup68 extends transversely from the lower end of the vacuum arm 67. As seenmore clearly in FIGS. 2 and A a bracket 69 is fixed to the underside ofcrossmember 47 and has mounted thereon air cylinder 70 which has anelectrical solenoid air valve 109 mounted on the rear thereof. The aircylinder 70 has a rod 71 projecting therefrom which is coupled to aclevis joint 72 carrying the pivotally mounted bag holding finger 73. Asseen in FIG. 5A when actuated by the air cylinder 70 the finger 73releases the upper edge of the bag blanks 21 to permit bending out ofthe upper left-hand comer of the front bag 42 at the proper time.

As seen in FIGS. 10 and 10A shaft 54 extends out behind pulley 53 andhas mounted thereon a plurality of spaced apart cams 74a, 74b, and 740.Each cam is provided with a respective cutout portion 75a, 75b, and 75cwhich actuates the respective arms 76a, 76b, and 76c of the electricallimit switches 77a, 77b, and 770 mounted above the shaft 54 on bracket78.

ADVANClNG ASSEMBLY ing flat rims are fixedly mounted on shaft 83 forrotationtherewith. The wheels 85 are mounted directly below theseparator segment wheels 82, which also have flat rims, for contacttherewith upon rotation of the shaft carrying the separator segmentwheels. An upper forward shaft 86 is mounted between support brackets79-79 by means of bearing blocks 87-87. A plurality of wheels 88 havingflat rims are fixedly mounted on shaft 86. A lower forward shaft 89 iscarried by bearing blocks 90 mounted on brackets 79-79. A plurality ofwheels 91 having flat rims are affixed to the shaft 89 and engage thewheels 88 mounted on upper forward shaft 86. A drive sprocket 92 isaffixed to the left-hand end of shaft 86 and connects this shaft toshaft 80 by means of chain drive 93 and drive sprocket 94 located onclutch 96.

A segment wheel clutch assembly, designated generally by the numeral 95,is connected to the end of shaft 80, as can be seen more clearly in FIG.6. The segment wheel clutch assembly includes a single revolution typeclutch 96 mounted on the outer left-hand end of shaft 80. An electricalsolenoid 97 lifts finger 98 to permit the single revolution clutch 96 todrive the shaft 80 through one complete revolution before being stopped.

As seen more clearly in FIGS. 1 and 3 an electric motor 99 is coupled toshaft 86 by means of gear reducer box 100. Thus, the upper wheels 88 andlower contacting wheels 91 are continuously driven by means of motor 99.Separator segment wheels 82 and matching wheels are intermittentlydriven through one revolution at a time when actuated through thesegment clutch assembly 95.

OPERATION In operation a supply of stacked, flat articles, such as thebag blanks 21 shown in the drawings, are placed on the conveyor assemblyand moved into position against the rear face of rotating discs 48 and55. Referring now to FIGS. 7 through 7C and 8 the sequence of operationof the various components of the article separating assembly will bedescribed. The electrical components of the apparatus are energized byclosing switch or switches 101 which energize through starters, the discdrive motor 58, vacuum pump motor 102 (not shown in other FIGS), and theseparator drive electric motor 99. The forwarding sets of rollers orwheels 88 and 91 are set in continuous motion and the discs 48 and 55remain in the rest position in FIG. 7 since the clutch-brake assembly 59which drives discs 48 and 55 through pulleys 62 and 57, and belt 63 isdisengaged on initial startup. Limit switch 104 is positioned onwhatever conveyor assembly (not shown) or other machine that the articleseparating apparatus is feeding. This switch may be actuated by eitherthe movement of the conveyor assembly or by a single article moving awayfrom the separating apparatus. Switch 104 (DPST) closes control relay105, time delay relay 106, and time delay relay 107 which actuatesfourway air valve solenoid 108 energizing air cylinder 64 to swingvacuum arm 67 into the out or open position. Since the vacuum pumpcontinuously applies vacuum to the arm 67, movement of the arm bendsback the upper edge of the outermost or front bag 42 as can be seen inFIG. 7A. Time delay relay 106 is in series with time delay relay 107 andthereby holds open the circuit to four-way valve 109 which actuates aircylinder 70 that causes bag retaining finger 73 to move to the downposition and holds back all of the bags behind the forwardmost bag 42,as may be seen more clearly in FIGS. 5A and 7A. Time delay relay 106 isselected to provide a time interval sufficient to permit vacuum arm 67to pull out the upper left-hand comer of the outermost bag 42 beforevalve 109 is actuated to move the bag retaining finger 73 to thedownward position. As seen in FIG. 5A when bag retaining finger 73 movesto the downward position limit switch 110 is actuated which disengagesthe brake and engages the clutch in the clutch-brake assembly 59 andstarts rotation of discs 48 and 55 as shown in FIG. 7A. The leading edgeof the first disc 48 enters behind the front or forwardmost bag 42 andby means of a wire riser 111 pushes the left-hand upper edge of the bag42 away from the next innermost bag. The second disc 55 is positioned sothat its leading edge enters behind the outermost bag 42 after the firstdisc 43 is substantially interposed between the outermost bag and thesecond bag. The second disc pushes the right-hand upper edge of the bagforward as shown in FIG. 7B. When the first disc 48 rotates sufficientlyto cut in behind the first bag, cam 74a energizes limit switch 77a whichcauses two-way air valve 112 to open, thereby releasing the vacuum inarm 67 to disengage the suction cup 68 from the upper left-hand cornerof the outermost bag 42. After the time interval determined by the delayfactor of time delay relay 107 the solenoid 108 acts to reverse thedirection of air cylinder 64 to thereby swing vacuum arm 67 back to therest position against the now front bag in the stack 21 (as seen in FIG.7C).

After the trailing edge of the second disc 55 frees the upper edge ofbag 42 the cam 74b on shaft 54'of disc 55 engages limit switch 77b whichactuates the solenoid 97 raising the finger 98 thereby actuating singlerevolution clutch 96. This pennits chain drive 93 to engage through theclutch the shaft 80 and to rotate the segment discs 82 carried by theshaft 80. As seen in FIG. 7B the segment wheels 82 turn down to contactthe backside of the leading edge of the front bag 42 and press theleading edge of this bag against the lower rollers 85 and thereby pullthe bag up and out from the stack as shown in FIG. 7D and in FIG. 4. Therollers 41 permit easy withdrawal of the bag without causing movement ofthe bags immediately behind the outermost or front bag. Limit switch 77b(DPST) has one arm connected to the holding circuit for control relay105 whereby this circuit is opened so that the clutch-brake assembly 59can be stopped at the proper time. Discs 48 and 55 continue to rotateuntil they return to the stop position as shown in FIGS. 1, 2, and 3.The discs are stopped by means of limit switch 770 which is actuated bycam 74c on shaft 54 of the second disc 55 to disengage the clutch andengage the brake in clutch-brake assembly 59. Time delay relay I07 dropsout thus deactivating the four-way air valve solenoid I08 causing theair cylinder 64 to reverse the air flow and to swing the vacuum arm 67back to the initial position shown in FIG. 7. The closing of this relayalso causes the bag retaining finger 73 to move to the up position byreversing the air flow in air cylinder 70. The continuously rotatingsets of wheels 88' and 91 receive the bag from the separator segmentwheels 82 and propel the bag forward onto a conveyor assembly (notshown) which conveys the bag to whatever operation is required, such asto the head of a sewing machine whereby the bottom or the bottom and thetop of the bag may be closed by a line of thread stitching.

The individual bags are removed from the front of the stack 21 and thestack is periodically advanced to keep bags pressed against the discs 48and 55. Limit switch 36 is actuated as the front bags are removed,thereby energizing the two-way air solenoid valve 38 to supply air toair cylinder 32 to advance the bags by means of rod 33 and gear 35driving the conveyor assembly. The air cylinder 32 is equipped withautomatic reversing ports whereby when the rod 33 is retracted to itsminimum position, it is automatically repositioned to its forwardmostposition. By means of a one-way clutch mechanism within the drive gear35 this gear rotates freely on the shaft 29 as the rod 33 isrepositioned.

For a further explanation of the operation of the solenoid valves whichcontrol the pneumatic system, i.e., the bag retaining lever aircylinder, the pivot arm, vacuum arm mechanism and the bag feedingadvance mechanism, reference is now made to FIG. 9 of the drawings. Thesolenoid valve 109 which controls the air supply to air cylinder 70operating the bag retaining lever 73 is a two-way solenoid valve wherebyair fiowing in may be directed through line 114 to the forward portionof the cylinder 70 to cause the bag retaining finger 73 to be lifted.When the solenoid is moved to the other position air flows through line115 to the rear portion of the cylinder causing the finger to bedepressed and contact the bags. As the valve in solenoid 109 changesposition air contained in one side of the piston is exhausted eitherthrough line 114 or line 115.

Air through supply line 113 is directed by solenoid valve 108 to the aircylinder 64 which actuates the pivot arm 66 and vacuum arm 67. Solenoid108 is a two-way solenoid valve whereby air may be supplied through line116 to the forward portion of air cylinder 64 to move the vacuum arm 67into the normal or closed position whereby the vacuum cup 68 contactsthe face of the outermost bag. On actuation of the valve the air flow isswitched from line 116 to line 117, and line 116 is then opened toexhaust whereby air fiows to the rear portion of the air cylinder 64 topivot am 66 and vacuum arm 67 into the out or open position to fold backthe upper left-hand comer of the outermost bag blank. Air through supplyline 113 is also connected to solenoid valve 112 which controls airsupply into the vacuum arm 67 to overcome the vacuum applied by the pump(not shown) and to thereby release the vacuum and detach the cup 68 fromthe face of the forwardmost bag. Solenoid valve 112 is a one-way valvewhich supplies air pressure to overpower the vacuum through line 118.

The air through supply line 113 is also fed to solenoid valve 38 whichis a one-way valve supplying air through line 119 to air cylinder 32which motivates the bag advance mechanism. As seen the air cylinder 32has innerpilots at both ends and is supplied with the necessaryconnections to provide for automatic reciprocation of the rod. 33 whenthe rod has reached the limit of its travel. Thus no reversing solenoidair valves are required since the air cylinder is provided with thereversing features.

ALTERNATE CONSTRUCTIONS Referring now to FIG. 11 of the drawings thereis depicted an alternate embodiment of the conveyor assembly 20 whereinthe rearward shaft 26 is provided with a cylindrical roller 126. Theforward shaft 29 is also provided with a like roller 127. These rollerscarry an endless belt 128 which supports and conveys the stacked, flatarticles. The belt 128 has a plurality of support straps 129 on itsupper surface attached by brads or adhesive or other suitable means.Each of the straps 129 is provided with a plurality of upstandingfingers 130 which serve the same purpose as do the fingers 39 describedhereinbefore. This type of conveyor mechanism may be preferred to thatshown in FIGS. 1, 2, and 3 since it provides a broader base for thearticles to be fed to the apparatus and thus may more readilyaccommodate different size articles.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 12 the article feeder or conveyorassembly 20 is provided with legs 120 of variable length. Each of thelegs has an upper portion 120a slidably received within a lower portion120b. The leg portions are telescopically connected and make slidingcontact with each other to permit upward and downward movement to raiseand lower the level of the bed or frame 25 of the conveyor assembly.Each leg is provided with a hydraulic actuator 121 having a shaft 122projecting from the upper end thereof. The shaft has its upper endconnected by means of bolts 123 to a bracket 124 which is welded to theupper portion of the leg 1280. it is to be understood that the legsdirectly behind those shown in FIG. 12 are similarly equipped withsliding sections and hydraulic actuators. The hydraulic actuators arecom nected to a common power source and are used to adjust the height ofthe frame and conveyor assembly to compensate for different widths ofwhatever type articles are being fed to the article separatingapparatus. As shown in dotted outlines in FIGS. 12 and 13 the separatorassembly 21 is supported on separate legs 125 independent of theconveyor assembly. This pennits the height of the bed of the conveyorassembly to be raised or lowered while maintaining the separatorassembly at a fixed height to adjust for the different heights ofarticles being fed by the conveyor assembly. This insures that theseparating discs are properly positioned on the face of the frontarticle and that the article is properly positioned for pickup by thesegment wheels 82 for withdrawal from the stack of flat articles. Whilethe alternate embodiment for the separating apparatus is shown as beingactuated by hydraulic mechanisms it is understood that screw elevatormechanisms or other suitable equivalent, may be used to raise and lowerthe bed of the conveyor. Further, it is understood that instead ofadjusting the conveyor assembly it may be more appropriate andconvenient to adjust the height of the separator and forwardingassemblies.

It is understood that the article separating device of the presentinvention may be used to feed other flat materials such as box blanks,envelopes, or any flat article that can be readily conveyed by this typeof apparatus and it is not necessarily limited to the handling of bagblanks.

The foregoing disclosure and description of the invention isillustrative and explanatory thereof, and in the light thereof, othermodifications will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Therefore,the present invention is to be limited only by the scope of the appendedclaims.

lclaim:

l. in an apparatus for separating stacked flat articles the combinationcomprising:

a. a conveyor assembly for supporting and intermittently advancing aplurality of stacked flat articles;

b. an intermittently operating separator assembly for separating thefront article from said plurality of stacked flat articles;

c. a continuously operating advancing assembly to move said frontarticle away from said plurality of stacked flat articles, saidseparator assembly including:

d. a movable restraining finger durce for holding back said stacked flatarticles.

e. a pivotally mounted suction arm device for folding outward one cornerof said front article;

f. a pair of interconnected intermittently rotating discs mounted abovesaid stacked flat articles to bend outwardly the upper part of saidfront article;

g. a clutch-brake device attached to one of said discs to periodicallyactuate the discs;

h. power means to drive said clutch-brake device;

i. a segment wheel device rotatably mounted forward of said pair ofdiscs-to engage the upper part of said front article and withdraw saidarticle from said stack; and

j. power means to drive said segment wheel device.

2. In the apparatus of claim 1 wherein at least one of said rotatingdiscs is provided with a projection on the front face thereof adapted tofurther bend outwardly the upper part of said front article.

3. In the apparatus of claim 11 wherein said suction arm device isprovided with means to overcome the vacuum to release said frontarticle.

4. In the apparatus of claim 1 wherein said power means to drive saidsegment wheel device includes a one revolution clutch assembly wherebysaid segment wheel device may be periodically actuated for onerevolution and then stopped.

5. In an apparatus for separating stacked flat articles the combinationcomprisin a. a conveyor assembly for supporting and intermittentlyadvancing a plurality of stacked flat articles;

b. an intermittently operating separator assembly for separating thefront article from said plurality of stacked flat articles;

c. a continuously operating advancing assembly to move said frontarticle away from said plurality of stacked flat articles, saidseparator assembly including:

d. a pivotally mounted suction arm device for folding outwardly onecorner only of said front article;

e. a pair of interconnected intermittently rotating discs mounted abovesaid stacked flat articles to bend outwardly the entire upper part ofsaid front article;

f. means connected to said discs to periodically actuate the same;

g. power means to actuate said last name means;

h. means forward of said pair of discs to engage the upper part of saidfront article and withdraw said article from said stack; and

i. power means to drive said last-named means.

6. The apparatus of claim 5 in which one of said discs engages said onecorner of said front article prior to engagement of said article by theother of said discs.

7. The structure of claim 5 and in which one of said discs engages saidone comer of said front article and increases the size of the portion ofthe upper edge of the front article bent forwardly from the remainder ofsaid stacked articles and the other disc subsequently engages the upperedge of the front article and completes the separation'of the upper edgeof said front article from the remainder of said stacked articles.

8. The structure of claim 5 and including means engageable with saidfront article intermediate the upper and lower edges thereof throughoutthe time said front article is completely removed from said stack.

9. The structure of claim 5 and including advancing means engageablewith said front article after it has been separated from said stack foradvancing said article, and guiding means forwardly of said stackintermediate the upper and lower ends thereof over which said frontarticle is drawn by said advancing means.

H0. The apparatus of claim 9 and in which said guiding means bends saidfront article as it is advanced by said advancing means.

Ill. The apparatus of claim 9 means comprise rollers.

12. The structure of claim 9 and in which the lower edge of said frontarticle is moved upwardly upon engagement of the upper part of the frontarticle by said advancing means.

13. The structure of claim 5 and in which said suction arm device ispivotally supported on an upright generally vertical axis parallel tothe plane of the articles.

and in which said guiding

1. In an apparatus for separating stacked flat articles the combinationcomprising: a. a conveyor assembly for supporting and intermittentlyadvancing a plurality of stacked flat articles; b. an intermittentlyoperating separator assembly for separating the front article from saidplurality of stacked flat articles; c. a continuously operatingadvancing assembly to move said front article away from said pluralityof stacked flat articles, said separator assembly including: d. amovable restraining finger durce for holding back said stacked flatarticles. e. a pivotally mounted suction arm device for folding outwardone corner of said front article; f. a pair of interconnectedintermittently rotating discs mounted above said stacked flat articlesto bend outwardly the upper part of said front article; g. aclutch-brake device attached to one of said discs to periodicallyactuate the discs; h. power means to drive said clutch-brake device; i.a segment wheel device rotatably mounted forward of said pair of discsto engage the upper part of said front article and withdraw said articlefrom said stack; and j. power means to drive said segment wheel device.2. In the apparatus of claim 1 wherein at least one of said rotatingdiscs is provided with a projection on the front face thereof adapted tofurther bend outwardly the upper part of said front article.
 3. In theapparatus of claim 1 wherein said suction arm device is provided withmeans to overcome the vacuum to release said front article.
 4. In theapparatus of claim 1 wherein said power means to drive said segmentwheel device includes a one revolution clutch assembly whereby saidsegment wheel device may be periodically actuated for one revolution andthen stopped.
 5. In an apparatus for separating stacked flat articlesthe combination comprising: a. a conveyor assembly for supporting andintermittently advancing a plurality of stacked flat articles; b. anintermittently operating separator assembly for separating the frontarticle from said plurality of stacked flat articles; c. a continuouslyoperating advancing assembly to move said front article away from saidplurality of stacked flat articles, said separator assembly including:d. a pivotally mounted suction arm device for folding outwardly onecorner only of said front article; e. a pair of interconnectedintermittently rotating discs mounted above said stacked flat articlesto bend outwardly the entire upper part of said front article; f. meansconnected to said discs to periodically actuate the same; g. power meansto actuate said last name means; h. means forward of said pair of discsto engage the upper part of said front article and withdraw said articlefrom said stack; and i. power means to drive said last-named means. 6.The apparatus of claim 5 in which one of said discs engages said onecorner of said front article prior to engagement of said article by theother of said discs.
 7. The structure of claim 5 and in which one ofsaid discs engages said one corner of said front article and increasesthe size of the portion of the upper edge of the front article bentforwardly from the remainder of said stacked articles and the other discsubsequently engages the upper edge of the front article and completesthe separation of the upper edge of said front article from theremainder of said stacked articles.
 8. The structure of claim 5 andincluding means engageable with said front article intermediate theupper and lower edges thereof throughout the time said front article iscompletely removed from said stack.
 9. The structure oF claim 5 andincluding advancing means engageable with said front article after ithas been separated from said stack for advancing said article, andguiding means forwardly of said stack intermediate the upper and lowerends thereof over which said front article is drawn by said advancingmeans.
 10. The apparatus of claim 9 and in which said guiding meansbends said front article as it is advanced by said advancing means. 11.The apparatus of claim 9 and in which said guiding means compriserollers.
 12. The structure of claim 9 and in which the lower edge ofsaid front article is moved upwardly upon engagement of the upper partof the front article by said advancing means.
 13. The structure of claim5 and in which said suction arm device is pivotally supported on anupright generally vertical axis parallel to the plane of the articles.